Once More, Unto the Breach

                            By:

                         Fox Cutter

    Chapter 6

I was jarred awake by the feeling of a hand descending on my
shoulder, and a voice whispering my name into my ear. I
turned over a bit and yawned, rubbing my eyes a bit and
finding that I had sleep with my glasses on.

Adjusting them slightly I sat up and looked around the room.
It was much lighter now, the tapestries that had been
covering the window at night had been pulled aside to let
the sun light stream into the room.

"How's your head?" Ken asked from beside me.

"Much better actually." I said, stretching my arms out. "My
headache is totally gone."

He smiled. "That is good." He said, pulling his satchel over
his shoulder.

I stood myself, dusting my shirt off a bit, Kalie had all
ready left, to breakfast I assumed. "What did you do to me
last night?" I asked, remembering the feeling of magic that
had washed over my from Ken.

"I made you sleep."

That was an answer I didn't expect. "I though you said you
couldn't make me sleep again?"

He nodded a bit, his head dropping some. "I can't, not
normally. Last night I forced you into a magic sleep, and
you would have stayed asleep until I woke you up again. I
use it on myself some times when I need to sleep, it's not
exactly safe but it works well."

I frowned as I processed all this. "Oh... that is something
a bit unpleasant to know... I... please don't do it again?"
I said, looking into his eyes. The fact that he could for me
to sleep like that scared me a bit.

A small look of pain fluttered over his face, then he slowly
nodded. "I won't then."

I sighed, I had hurt him with that. "Come on then, we need
to eat, and we have a long day before us." I told him as I
walked towards the door out of the room. He followed, though
didn't seem very happy. More so then what my actions had
done.

Halfway to the dinning hall I finally decided to ask.
"What's bothering you Ken? Something I did?"

He shook his head. "Nothing from what you did Fox. I'm just
re-thinking something I did years ago."

That didn't sound good. "Here?"

He nodded his head again, lowering it a bit more. "Yes, I
don't want to talk about it though."

I frowned, that sounded really bad. "When you want to then,
I'll be here to listen."

He gave me a pained look, then nodded. "Thank you."

I smiled back at him as we both walked into the dinning
hall. It was a bit brighter in the morning, lit by the sun
though the windows and not by the torches, or the always
going fire.

Kalie was there all ready, as well as Thrysten and Draz. All
three where talking to each other about something. I assumed
the possible defense of the castle.

Thrysten was the one who noticed our arrival. She smiled and
waved a foreclaw at us. "Good morning, come, break your
fast."

Never one to disregard an invitation for food, I sat down
accost from Kalie. A servant instantly was next to me,
putting a plate of eggs and ham down in front of me, as well
as a goblet of wine. He was almost instantly gone. Looking
around the room I noticed there where actually three of the
castle's servers waiting by the door to the kitchen. In fact
as I though about it I realized that they where most
everywhere in the castle, they just vanished from my
attention.

I shook my head a bit and started into my food. Ken sat next
to me, receiving the same fair, though slightly rawer.

"Are you still planing to do this alone?" Draz asked, the
questing was clearly aimed at me.

I nodded, swallowing a mouthful of food. "Unless you have
someone you want to take with me."

He shook his head. "No-one that would not make this
situation worse then it is."

I frowned, with Oriana out there, it quite possibly was all
ready worse. I could still see which direction she was in
too, thanks to a ghost like arrow that was floating in front
of my vision. Thankfully it seemed to vanish when I wasn't
looking at it.

Kalie strained up a bit. "I think some short term defense of
the castle can be done. It will take some work, but we
should be able to stand for at least a day. Which, if you're
late wizard had prepared, should be enough time for Ken to
preform a spell to attack them."

Ken sat up at the mention of his name. "I rather believe
that there would only be defensive spells, as offensive
spells take much more power."

She nodded. "It would be enough."

"For now," I said taking a sip of the wine. I really didn't
like it, but the water here was undrinkable. To many illness
having worked there way into it. "If there is a siege on the
castle we will eventually need all the attack power we can
get."

Ken nodded softly, going back to his food.

Thrysten stood. "Very well then, Fox I suggest we get on our
way. Ken, you will want to see this."

Ken and I exchanged glances, but both of us stood, and
followed her out of the dinning hall. She went though the
kitchen and out there exit, over the small bridge over the
moat, and out into a garden, until there was a grove a
tree's between us and the castle.

"I believe you all ready know where the stable is," she
said, "you'll have to get there yourself. Ken you will need
to return to the castle immediately after this is done."

I nodded. "Should not be a problem... now I assume you'll
finally tell us how you plan to fly with out being seen?"
There was a trace of sarcasm in my words. Thrysten had come
from a world with a lower gravity, which allowed her to fly
there. Anyplace else it took a lot of work just to get off
the ground.

"I will show you." She said, and started to unlace the top
of her blouse, though I think bodice is the proper word for
it. As she started to open it I turned on my heal, so my
back was to her.

She laughed. "When did you become a prude Fox?"

"Just trying to preserver your modesty." I responded.

She laughed again as her shirt flew over my head. "In this
place there really is no such thing. Being Queen means I
have no real privacy. Ever time I take my cloths off a
servant is there to help." This time her pants went though
the air above my head.

"Why are you doing this anyway?"

"Because it's a pain in the tail to get new clothing." She
said, her panties following the rest of her clothing. "Now,
please turn around, I want you to see this."

I gulped a bit, and turned. She was totally nude now, except
for her gem, which she was holding in one of her foreclaws,
her finger like talons wrapped around it gently. She was in
profile to me, so I wasn't seeing anything to unmentionable,
but it was still embarrassing. Ken thou had moved to take in
a better view, which was normal for him to do.

Thrysten let a smile play accost her flexible beak. "Watch."
She said and spread her wings, and spread them and then
spread them further.

They where growing larger, expanding in side, her feathers
thickening as well. The growth sending ripples though the
fur and feathers of her chest. I noticed then that the gem
was glowing in her talons. This was clearing the source of
her change.

The change didn't stop with the growth of her wings though.
It seemed to expand outward from them. The growing mussels
under her skin started to pulling out, pushing her chest out
farther then it was pleasant to look at. At the same time
her breasts where getting smaller, until there had vanished
into her body entirely.

With a loud snap she fell to the ground, landing with one
foreclaw propping her up, the other still holding the gem.
Her legs where perched on her toes as her feet started to
lengthen, while the rest of her legs shorted, as well as
thickened. Her upper body was changing as well, spreading
out as it thickened, her arms getting longer, her foreclaws
becoming talons proper and digging into the ground.

With a second snap her head swung upright, as her neck
thickened. The shape changed, becoming larger, her beak
growing longer, and hardening. Her eyes spreading out as her
shape finally settled into place.

She let go of the stone, which fell to her chest, and sat
back onto her haunches, a very proper looking none-morphic
gryphoness.

"Master," Ken whispered, "A norm-shift stone."

Thrysten nodded her head. Then squawked and nodded towards
the castle.

"I think you're being dismissed Ken. Though you can talk to
her about it later I would assume."

Ken nodded a bit, his eyes glazed over slightly. Though he
didn't move. Finally Thrysten squawked at him again. He
jumped a bit then nodded, this time going back to the
castle.

I smiled as he vanished though the trees, then looked at
Thrysten. "So that's how you can fly. Impressive."

She flared her wings slightly, and bent her head back to
preen some of her feathers. I chuckled, she was clearly
proud of it.

"Right then, the stables are this way?" I asked, pointed in
the direction I though they were.

She nodded a bit, then crouched down, fanning her wings out
slightly. With a heave of her hind legs she jumped strait
up, maybe ten feet into the air. As she rose she spread her
wings, forcing them down at the high of her jump. Her
wingspan must have been thirty-five feet. Three times Sora's
wingspan and ten feet larger then Kens.

She rose into the air, beating her wings again, easily
carrying herself over the trees and into the sky. I smiled
to myself, and started to the stables, suddenly feeling a
lot safer going to see Krege.

* * *

"What the hell do you think your doing?" I scolded myself
for the thousand time. I had been doing it sense I left the
castle the night before. I was being an idiot and an ass, as
well as a fool.

I had no idea what possessed me to actually start out to try
and assassinate Krege. It was ludicrous, the whole idea of
it made me ill.

Yet here I was, disguised as one of his solders, wondering
around his base camp. I felt, sort of numb, not like before
when I had been forced to kill, this was different. I had
chosen to do on my own, and it frightened me.

I tried to justify it to myself by saying I was going to
rescue Sora, as much as she annoyed me, but it didn't wash.
It always came back to the same thing.

I was planing on killing someone. Willing walking in to do
it. It frightened me on some level, but I couldn't feel it.
It was like 'I was going on autopilot' as Fox would say.

I had actually tried to find Sora when I first got to the
camp, only to be told that she had been killed the night
before. That... shocked me, badly, and made me angrier then
ever. Sure Sora was a pain in the rump, they way she always
help me in contempt for being a Madam, and how she treated
me when I became an assassin...

I am an assassin... funny, no one has said that phrase since
I acutely passed the review. Maybe it was out of a sense
decency, or just disbelief, but I was never called an
assassin. I never even though of myself as one.

I looked down at my paws. I could still see the blood of the
ferret I had killed. I still don't know what his name ways,
just that I had killed him. Every time I looked at my paws
they blood was there, soaking into my fur, my pads and my
claws.

I think it will always be there.

Finding a boulder to sit on, I keep looking at my paws. I
had considered killing myself a thousand times since I
became this. I probably would have if Fox hadn't taking me
back to Prid. Then again that wasn't all his doing, I did
see Thryn's Gems on his hand. If I hadn't, I probably would
have refused to go.

All that was a moot point though. I was on a different
would, trying to help clean up a mess Fox left behind
himself, and I was doing by planing on killing there leader
of the bad guys.

Talk about being stupid.

If I did manage to assassinate him it would make things even
worse. Whoever his second was would go berserk, and destroy
the castle, Fox, and everyone else without a second though.

"Unless," I whispered, my training suddenly kicking in, "it
looked like his second and killed him. Then it would seem
that he did it to insure a battle." It was a good plan too,
if his seconded went into a rampage while it looked like he
had killed Krege, who ever was under the second would assume
he did it because Krege was going to workout a deal. They
would take over and would workout a friendly surrender
because they would believe that Krege wanted that.

I stood, smiling. It would actually work, the problem would
be making his second look guilty. Though a little well
placed blood and an unbelievable story, curtsy of Fox's
Matrix chip, would make him...

'WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING!!!' I though to myself. I was
actually planing this out, simply, easily, I was actually
working out how to do it and to make sure it worked.

I looked at the sword belted around my waste. I didn't know
how to use it, but it wouldn't be too hard to fall on it,
point first. I just would need a secluded spot where I my
body wouldn't be found, except eventually by Fox. I was sure
the Matrix chip could be traced back to where I was in some
fashion.

Reaching for the hilt of my sword, I undid the leather strap
holding it in, and slid it out just a thumbs length. All I
needed was a place to do it at, then it would be just a few
quick moves, and I would be dead.

Dead... that had an unpleasant ring to it, but there was
nothing else to do. I had just proven to myself, I really
was an assassin. I was trained for it, well trained... I had
achieved highest score in seven years in my review with the
Guild.

I found what looked like a good spot in the distance, maybe
an hours walk away. Pushing my sword back into it's sheath,
I started towards it.

I only got a few feet before someone barked. "Boy!" Right
into my ear, then grabbed my shoulder, twisting me around. I
found myself nose to nose with one of the higher ranked
solders in the camp. I started to panic, this could turn
very bad, very quick.

"We've been ordered to escort in a guest to see Salden."

I frowned, they only guest they could mean is Fox, and
anyone they sent with him. Though had no idea who Salden
was, I had heard his name around the camp before, but I had
not found out anything about him. I suspected he was Krege's
second, and from the sound of how people talk about him,
rather a good scapegoat for my plan.

"Come about it boy!" The guard said, yanking my shoulder. I
had no choice, so I gave him a quick nod, and started
towards the front of the camp.

-----

This story is (c) 1997 by Fox Cutter, hardcopy reprints
limited to one a person, all other rights reserved. This
story may not be distributed for a fee except by permission
of the author, and this copyright notice may not be removed.